John Quincy Adams
(July 11, 1767 – February 23, 1848)
Democratic-Republican
1825-1829
John C. Calhoun

John Quincy Adams, son for former president, John Adams, was not very well liked by the people of the United States. Although his intentions for the country were good, it was not what America wanted at that time. He was for nationalism, while the rest of the nation was for sectionalism, and because of this and such acts as the Tariff of Abominations, Adams deserves a D.
One of Adams’ goals as president was to internally improve the states by building roads and canals to bring the states together, but as America was becoming more sectionalized, nobody really cared about this idea. He also sought to establish a national university and wanted the government to finance scientific expeditions and make an observatory. However, Congress felt that these actions were exceeding government power, so he never did accomplish these goals.
Adams and Congress had a neutral relationship. Adams had been elected, not by popular vote, but because of Henry Clay’s influence in the House of Representatives, so congress may have disliked him because of that. But there was never anything big that happened during his presidency, and he was respected for his peacefulness.
During his presidency, Adams was not able to accomplish much due to the lack of support from his congress and the people, so he did not have one big action that affected America. However, he was able to establish the Erie Canal which transported people and goods between the Northeast and the Great Lakes. His action with the most negative outcome was the Tariff of Abominations. This was enacted to protect the growing industry in the North, but the Southerners didn’t like it because they didn’t have any industry and were now being forced to buy it at a high price when Britain was selling their goods cheap. So, while Adams was trying to help America and increase its industry, it ended up hurting the South.
John Q. Adams did not have much of an impact on future presidents because nothing really happened during his presidency. Perhaps one lasting though he left, though, was that it is best to follow what the people want or else there will be no one supporting you.
The country was neither better nor worse when Adams left than it had been when he arrived. While he made some improvements to the nation, nothing prominent really had happened to say whether or not America was better off, and because of the passing of the Tariff of Abominations, this is why Adams deserved a D.


Lord, John. Beacon Lights of History.New York. 1902. pp. 15.
West, Willis Mason. American History and Government. Norwood Press. 1913. pp. 445.